Citation
accompanying the award of Mentioned in
Dispatches to
Pte. Hillier.

On 8
October 1966 during Operation Canberra in
Phuoc Tuy Province South Vietnam, B Company,
5th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment
was directed to clear the Nui Thi Vai Hill
which was a large rocky, steep, densely
covered feature. The area was known to be
heavily bobby trapped by the Viet Cong.
Private Hillier and another soldier as
forward scouts located a booby trap,
deloused it and a few minutes later heard
voices of enemy close by. Private Hillier
advised his Platoon Commander by hand signal
and covered the other scout who moved
forward to investigate. Initially fifteen
Viet Cong were sighted. and later thirty
Viet Cong. Both Private Hillier and the
other scout remained in a position of
observation for approximately fifty minutes;
at times the enemy came within five yards of
their position but the scouts were not seen.
Based on the information passed back by
Private Hillier and the other scout and
other information it was concluded that the
Viet Cong could be up to Battalion strength
and B Company was ordered to withdraw four
hundred metres to allow artillery and
airstrikes to be made on enemy positions.
Both scouts then skilfully extracted
themselves without disclosing their presence
to the Viet Cong and so alerting them.
Artillery and airstrikes were then made on
the enemy base which was later successfully
destroyed. The skill, courage and
determination displayed. by Private Hillier
was of a very high order and enabled the
area to be cleared without casualties to his
platoon or Company.